Freedom Hearts
by Andrexi
Summary: A girl with no memories, growing up in the streets of a rotting world. When an act of valor rewards her with a Keyblade, she's off, exploring new lands, but the darkness of her past could destory herself, her friends, and all the worlds.
1. Chapter One: New World Order

"It's true!"

"Yeah, right."

"It is!"

"You're such a liar."

"Am not! You take that back."

"Make me."

"Okay. I will!"

None of the people passing the rotting alley even gave the two young boys a second glance. Adults hurrying about their day, going to work, or running errands, all preferring to ignore the signs of decay slowly encroaching on their city. Who had time to be concerned about a couple of urchins fighting in the dark? Not even the other kids in the alley showed any signs of wanting to break up the fight. Most had tuned the boys out long ago, trying to sleep while it was day time and still safe to do so. Others watched with varying degrees of interest. This was the most entertaining thing to happen, or probably would happen, in weeks.

Fights like this would break out from time to time. It was considered best to let them tire themselves out, or wait until someone was injured enough to call 'Uncle.' Of course, if the fight became too rowdy an officer might show up, and everyone in the alley would be in trouble then. When it came to this it was every man for himself, and usually resulted in the ones who'd been too busy fighting to notice ending up spending the night in the jail house. If they were lucky. Unlucky ones ended up getting shipped to the nightmare of an orphanage on the far side of the city.

That had always been the world order for those forgotten children of the streets. Every now and then, however, a new order was bound to spring up.

"Stop it!"

A new voice was added to the fight, one that made all the kids pay attention. Surprised, the boys even paused long enough to be pulled apart. They didn't look any worse than before, their clothes and general appearance being too torn and dirty for one little fight to make much of a difference. The girl who pulled them apart didn't look any better, her sad excuse for a dress tattered and fraying and her black hair in dire need of a brushing, but she held herself with confidence no twelve year old living in an alley should have.

Isabella, or, more typically, Izzy. She'd shown up just weeks before, with nothing but her first name and a small ring on a chain around her neck. Not even a memory to give her an identity, but that wasn't unusual, what with all the stars blinking out. What was unusual was the fact the Izzy wasn't obsessing about what she couldn't remember, like other kids. It didn't seem to bother her. When she realized she couldn't remember where she'd come from, she just shrugged and focused on what was really important: Getting something to eat that day.

"How is fighting going to help any of us?"

The two boys, Kyo, eight, and Alec, eleven, stared at Izzy, like they couldn't quite understand what was happening. No kid had broken up a fight before. Kyo recovered first.

"Alec started it!"

"Nu-uh! You called me a liar."

"That's cause you are."

"No I'm not!"

"Enough!" Izzy crossed her arms, glaring at the two boys. Getting an angry look from eyes that shade of violet tended to shut people up. "Most of us haven't eaten in days, Owen and Maya still don't have a place to sleep, and Kitty's just getting sicker. Why are you two wasting time fighting?" This was one of the most unusual things Izzy had done so far. She not only knew the other kids' names and problems, but she cared.

"Kyo called me a liar," Alec said, timidly. Kyo opened his mouth to respond, but Izzy cut him off, looking at Alec.

"And are you?"

"No, of course not!"

"Then why do you have to fight Kyo just to prove it?"

"Well, he," Alec looked stumped for a moment. "He insulted my dad, too."

"You don't have a dad," Kyo sneered. "None of us do."

"Kyo, shut up." Izzy looked very fed up with this fight continually going in circles. "Alec, explain."

Alec stood up, dusting himself off, which didn't do much, but helped him gather his dignity. He cleared his throat and launched into his story. "My dad was a great knight. The best in all the land. He fought of evil monsters that tried to attack the city and rescued fiar maidens, like my mom. He trained many of the king's best guards, and was teaching me how to be a knight, too. On my next birthday, I would have been on official squire."

Izzy had been covering Kyo's mouth with her hand to prevent further interruptions while she listened. The moment she removed her hand and began to thoughtfully play with the ring on the chain she wore, Kyo went back to objecting. "You have to be lying. If you were telling the truth you wouldn't be here right now. You'd be living in one of those big houses near the castle with your dad."

The older boy was ready to throw himself into a fight again, but another voice joined the conversation. A quiet, sweet voice, timid, like a mouse, but smart and knowledgeable in what it was saying. "Alec isn't lying." All heads turned to one of the upside down crates where an older girl sat.

Eliza. She was very pretty, even though she was covered in street grime, blonde with big, sweet blue eyes. Like Izzy, she cared about others, but in a kinder, less aggressive way. Normally, she sat reading whatever she could get her hands on. Or, more accurately, whatever her friend, Celino, could get his hand on for her. It was an accepted fact that Eliza was the smartest girl any kid could find.

"At least, he's probably not lying." She looked uncomfortable with all the attention suddenly on her, but Izzy spoke up before Eliza could hide in her book again.

"What do you mean, Eliza?"

Though she was two years older, Eliza couldn't help but answer when Izzy asked her a question. "This world wasn't always ruled by King Alfred."

"Who's King Alfred?" one of the younger kids asked. Anita, Izzy noticed, age five.

"He's the person in charge right now," Eliza answered. "Celino, will you grab that red book you got me last week?" Celino, a brown haired boy a year older than Eliza, grabbed the book she'd asked for right away. "Thanks." Eliza flipped through the pages, holding up the book for all the kids to see, showing a picture of a hawk faced man in royal robes. "This is King Alfred. But, before him," she turned a few pages back, now showing a picture of a rather jolly looking fellow on a throne, "King Morgan II ruled." Eliza closed the book, setting it on her lap. "That's why Alec is here now. When King Alfred led his hostile take over four years ago, he had King Morgan and all his knights…" She trailed off, looking at Alec with sympathy.

"They were all executed," Celino finished for her, knowing Eliza was too sweet to say it. Alec's eyes were wide and Kyo no longer looked like he wanted to argue. Izzy watched while Alec turned, clearly trying to push away unpleasant memories, on the verge of tears.

"Well," Izzy said, walking over and grabbing two busted broom handles from the pile, "there's only one way to find out whether he's really telling the truth." Confused, Alec turned, catching the broom handle Izzy tossed to him. "Show me some of those moves your dad taught you."

Wiping his eyes with the sleeve of his shirt, Alec nodded. "First, and most importantly, you have to hold the sword right…"


	2. Chapter Two: Alley Cats

Rotting, dirty, and forgotten The alley still looked as unforgiving as it had when Alec first started teaching Izzy sword play, only the crates and boxes the kids used to hide from the elements and the night had become slightly more organized. They lined each side of the alley, a blanket and even a few belongings in each one. Though still very aware of their hopeless situation in life, the children had started developing a sort underground community, where each did what they could so they all wouldn't starve. Although, the girl who always did the most was also the one who always seemed to go hungry.

"Owen, eat."

"I don't wanna."

"Owen, I could have lost a hand getting these apples. If you don't eat, it's an insult to both me and my hand."

The little boy looked up at Izzy, shaggy red hair covering his green eyes. "Maya said that if I let you give me your share again she'll knock my teeth out."

Izzy laughed. Maya, Owen's twin sister, had started following she and Alex around and, though she was only eight, seemed determined to make sure Izzy got enough to eat. "Tell you what," she said, holding the apple out to Owen again, "we'll just keep this our little secret, okay?" Owen looked at the apple, obviously hungry, but hesitant. The boy was going through a growth spurt, which was why Izzy was trying to get him to eat more. "You're too skinny, anyway." Not that she had much room to talk. Izzy was almost as skinny as the brooms she and Alex used to practice with, but Owen took the apple and bit hungrily into it.

His chewing added to the sounds of the other kids eating what Izzy had managed to bring back. She hadn't been joking about the losing her hand thing. If she'd been caught, no one would have hesitated to remove both the apples and her hand from her possession, and ship her off to the Orphanage. At fourteen, she was still young enough. But the sight of her friends getting a halfway decent meal for the first time in weeks made the risk worth it. Leaning against the side of the alley, Izzy watched them laugh and joke around. Everything seemed better in their world when there was food to be had. Her hand reached up and began to play with the ring around her neck.

Sell the stupid thing, she'd told herself time and time again. Pawn it off and use the money to buy food. That would be a far safer option than stealing most days, and while she sold everything else she came across, the ring was the one thing she could never bring herself to even take off. It was strange she was so attached to the one link to a past that she never even bothered tying to remember. Izzy knew one of these days she'd be forced to sell the silver ring with the strange inscription. One dark, cold winter when there were no other options.

But, that wasn't today. Today she would enjoy seeing her friends happy, even if her own stomach insisted on rumbling. Just as Izzy finally broke down and grabbed and apple for herself, a new sound covered up the chewing. Crying.

Izzy turned quickly, ready to deal with the situation, but faltered when she saw the source of the crying. It was Eliza, sobbing into Celino's shoulder as he carried her into the alley.

"What happened?" Izzy asked. "Is she hurt? Anita, grab that medicine kit from my stuff."

"No, Izzy, it's…. It's not exactly that." Celino was seventeen, older than anyone else. He could have found work somewhere, but he stuck around because Eliza wanted to stay and look out for the little kids. At that moment, he looked younger and more frightened than even Owen. Gently, he set Eliza down so she was leaning against the wall. The other kids had started gathering around, trying to find out why Eliza was crying.

"Alec," Izzy called quickly. Her friend nodded, clapping his hands together.

"Alright, guys. Who wants to hear a story about the Black Knight?"

"Tell the one about the dragon," one of the kids requested, and soon everyone was focused on Alec the Storyteller, rather than poor Eliza. Izzy smiled slightly, and then turned back to Eliza, who continued to cry.

"Celino, what happen?" Izzy asked.

"I don't know," he said, more upset about this fact than Eliza at the moment. "I just found her sobbing near the docks."

"The docks! Eliza, you know not to go over there. Those workers are no good. Celino, why were you even over there?"

"We can't eat just apples, Izzy. We need protein sometimes."

"Fish is not protein. Fish is gross."

"Grosser than that junk you brought back last week?"

"It wasn't junk. It was food from a different world, which made it exotic."

Their bickering, a familiar sound, seemed to help Eliza control her sobbing enough to talk just a litte. "There was a man," she choked out, interrupting Celino. "He, he offered me munny. More munny than Izzy's ever brought back." Eliza reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a bag. Izzy took the bag, pouring the contents out into her hand.

"Oh, Eliza! This is…" Her excitement vanished when she realized what Eliza had done to get this munny. "Oh, Eliza."

Eliza was sobbing into Celino's shoulder again. "I see how you two are always so helpful, and all I do is read, and I just, I just wanted to really help for once." Celino pulled Eliza into his arms, his eyes completely broken. Izzy stared at the munny in her hand.

"Clothes," she said, without looking up. "This is just enough to buy everyone new clothes."

"What?" Celino sounded confused.

"Well, not new, new clothes, but something from the used store. Something warmer. It won't be summer forever. I don't want to see another kid die this year."

"You're… You're not seriously considering spending that munny?" His tone sounded like Izzy had just suggested they skin live puppies. Izzy closed her fist, putting on a determined face.

"What else can we do, Celino? Let all this munny go to waste? What's done is done. We need food, clothes, maybe some matches."

"Izzy, I can't believe you'd even…"

"No." It was Eliza's voice, shaking and about to break again. "No, Izzy's right. I, I wanted to help. If we don't spend the munny, then what I did, what I did, what I…" She started crying again. Celino gave Izzy a look, like he was blaming her for everything. Izzy just sighed, pouring the munny back into the bad and standing, walking over to where Alec was just finishing telling of how the heroic Black Knight defeated the dragon and rescued the raven haired maiden.

"Okay guys. Who wants to go buy new clothes?" Izzy made her tone sound light and the announcement was met with cheers. Alex gave her a look, clearly wondering how they could possibly afford such a luxury, but she just shook her head, choosing five kids to come along first. As they left, Izzy tried to ignore Eliza's tears, vowing to find a brand new book for her while they were gone. She couldn't ignore Celino's face, however. Wow, if looks could kill….


	3. Chapter Three: A New Friend

"And what if you'd been caught? You're sixteen now. They'd toss you in jail. Though, with a face like yours, they'd probably find is more beneficial to sell you as a slave. God, you're so irresponsible."

Here we go again, Izzy thought, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall of the alley. Not The Alley. It was just some random alley near the docks. I'm irresponsible. I'm childish. I need to grow up. I need to find a real job. Blah, blah, blah. Jeez, is this really the same girl I grew up with?

Quietly, Izzy inspected Eliza, who was too busy yelling to notice. Eliza used prefer sensible blue dresses when she had the choice. Now all she bothered to buy was red and frighteningly revealing. Though she still chipped in with the rest of the kids, a lot of Eliza's money went to the heavy makeup she always wore. The reddest lipstick she could find, and tons of eye makeup, but no matter how much she bought, Eliza's once sweet blue eyes now just looked sad. Even when she was yelling at Izzy. Which is what she normally did when they met.

"Alright, I get it, Eliza," Izzy snapped, interrupting her when Eliza had gotten to the part about Izzy being useless dead. "You won't be happy unless I'm a 'lady of the night' just like you." Izzy quickly covered her mouth. Oops. That last bit was supposed to have been an inside thought.

"No, Izzy," Eliza replied, seeming more angry than before. Probably because of that last bit. "You don't get it. You like to run around acting like a thief, because you think that's the best way to get what you need."

"Well, it is."

"Not when you're caught. And trust me, you will be caught, because thievery is illegal."

"At least it's not immoral."

"What definition of immoral are you using, Isabella?" Izzy flinched, and Eliza smirked. Gone were the days when those violet eyes could hold power over the quiet book worm. "My profession is both legal and supported by the government."

"The government? You mean our corrupt, out of control, rotten to the core dictatorship?"

"It's a monarchy," Eliza snapped, for a moment sounding like her old self, but that was gone in an instant. "Isabella, those kids depend on us. If you get dragged off for being a thief that just leaves Celino and me."

"So basically, that leaves them with nothing," Izzy growled, "because we never see you, and every bit of munny Celino makes goes to, eh, some side project." In truth, Celino was saving so he could propose to Eliza and get her off the street corners. No matter how unpleasant he treated Izzy now, she'd keep his secret. That's what friends did.

Eliza looked deeply offended, but she persevered, determined to have Izzy see things her way this time. "If that's true, then you're being even more irresponsible. Think of Owen and Maya, and Anita, and Kimiko, and Kitty. Alec would particularly be crushed to see you carted off somewhere else in the world." Eliza seemed amused at Izzy's confusion about the last statement and she used that to her advantage. "You need to set an example for them. Honest work. Real jobs. Some way for them to move on with their life and find a way off the street. Isabella, you can't play hero forever. You have to show them how they can save themselves."

She was still the smartest person I know, Izzy thought, sighing. Eliza was right. Everything Izzy did came down to being the hero. All the risks she took, every decision she made, it was to help her friends, but it also made her feel pretty good, too. Was that childish of her? Was Eliza right? Maybe it was time to find a real job, and stop running around playing hero.

Two things prevented Izzy from saying this out loud.

One was the smug look on Eliza's face.

The other was a terrified scream coming from the far side of the docks.

Both girls jumped, but Eliza quickly composed herself. "Tough customer. Happens sometimes."

"That was a girl's scream," Izzy said, peering out of the alley.

"Yeah, it can get a little rough at times, but she knew what she was getting into." Eliza leaned back against the alley wall, coolly examining her painted fingernails.

Izzy gave Eliza a shocked look. "How can you be so heartless?" she asked, but another scream prevented Eliza from answering. Shaking her head, Izzy turned and ran out of the alley.

"Izzy! Come back! You'll get yourself killed!"

"Maybe you're right!" Izzy called back, still running. "But I'd rather die as myself than become you!"

It was late at night. The few people Izzy passed didn't even react to the running girl or the screams. This world really was rotten. The screams came from an abandoned warehouse that should have been torn down long ago. Izzy pushed her way through the rusting doors and stumbled to a stop. Her brain took a few moments to process what here eyes were seeing.

A girl Izzy didn't recognize, about her own age, was cowering against the far wall. In front of her, nearly blocking Izzy's view, was a monster.

Massive, and purple, which was normally Izzy's favorite color, but at the moment it was sickening. The creature walked on four cleft hooves, slowly approaching the terrified girl. Gnarly yellow tusks stuck out on either side of its mouth and a single black horn jutted from its head. It tensed, ready to charge, and the girl was completely petrified with fear. Doing the only thing she could think of, Izzy grabbed a chunk of piping and hurled it at the monster, hitting it square in the back.

The monster roared, whipping around, giving Izzy a murderous look out of its yellow eyes. She caught sight of the broken heart emblem on its chest before it leapt at her. Izzy rolled out of the way, feeling its hot breath above her before she sprinted towards the girl.

"Come on!" she cried, pulling the girl to her feet. "We have to move." The monster charged again and Izzy shoved the girl out of the way, jumping in the opposite direction. Its head rammed against the metal wall of the warehouse, leaving it momentarily stunned. "Run!" Izzy yelled. The girl obeyed, racing to the exit and making it out moments before Izzy. Before she could get through the door, however, the monster bucked, striking Izzy with one of its back hooves and sending her flying through the air. She landed with a painful thud in a heap of old boxes.

Eliza was right, Izzy thought, struggling to get to her feet. I'm really going to end up dead.

When she stood, Izzy saw the creature sniffing around the door, like it was about to chase after the girl.

"Hey!" Izzy called, waving her arms. "Over here you big, stupid, ugly beast! Why don't you pick one someone your own size?" The monster looked over at her. As it approached, Izzy could swear it was laughing, but she held her ground, ready to jump away at the last minute. It didn't charge though, but kept moving slowly, learning from the last time. There was no getting out of this one.

Something felt heavy in Izzy's hand.

"What in the worlds?" She looked down and just about dropped the thing that would save her life. In her hand was a sword. Or a really big key. Or perhaps both. Izzy didn't have time to examine it, however, as the monster chose the moment of her distraction to charge.

Tapping into the training she'd done with Alex, Izzy swung the blade to defend herself. Despite the difference in size, when the creature touched the blade it roared like it had been burned. Izzy smiled. Looks like it's not over yet. Going on the offensive, Izzy charged, slashing the blade across the monster's face. It twisted to the side, trying to impale Izzy with one of its tusks, but she easily jumped out of the way.

"Wasn't able to do that before," Izzy commented when she realized how high and far she'd jumped. The monster looked around, unable to find her for a moment. When it got her in its sights it roared, rearing up on its hind legs, giving Izzy a nice shot at its underbelly. She didn't miss a beat, charging forward and bringing the blade down its belly, across the emblem on its chest. The monster seemed to shatter, leaving only a heart that floated up and faded away.

Izzy was stunned, trying to process exactly what just happened. She looked at the weapon in her hand for a long moment, wondering.


	4. Chapter Four: Truths of the Keybearer

"I tumbled through the air, landing right on top of the monster, bringing my Keyblade down on its armored head. It let out a cry and shattered, like they all do, and that weird heart floated away." The kids circled around Izzy, listening intently as she told of her latest heroic adventure. "Then, that strange little man, with his top hat and cane, untangled himself from the underbrush and rushed over to shake my hand. 'Why thank ya, lassie,' he said, in the most outrageous accent you'd ever heard. 'I thought my tail feathers were cooked for sure.'" Izzy's Scottish accent was like her storytelling skills: Excellent. Good thing, too, because her stories had been in high demand since her battle in the warehouse four months prior.

When Izzy had first returned to the alley and told of her fight with the purple monster, no one had believed her, until the weapon appeared in her hand out of thin air. Alec had been the one to first call it a Keyblade.

"Well, that's what it looks like," he had said. "A blade in the shape of a key. Plus 'magic key sword' just doesn't have the same ring."

Not a day had passed that Izzy wasn't telling another story of how she'd used her Keyblade to fight off one of those shadow monsters. More and more of them had been appearing, and though none of them had been a big or as powerful as the first one, they were becoming quite a nuisance. It seemed like nothing but Izzy's Keyblade stood a chance against them. Not that King Alfred was doing much to battle against the monsters. He and the rest of the government were spending most of their time ignoring them or completely denying their existence, but this helped Izzy's new profession: Hero. Not that she asked for anything when she saved someone, but people could be surprisingly grateful.

"Before he left, he insisted on giving me this." Izzy held up a gorgeous ruby ring, the sight of which all the kid's ooed and awed at. "I was thinking chocolate cake and a night in some real beds at the inn." This was met with the excited scrambling of kids gathering up their little belongings. Smiling, Izzy started heading out of the alley, deciding to would be best to sell the ring right away. Usually, she saved what she got for a rainy day, but what was the point of life if you didn't have a little fun every now and then?

"Izzy!" Anita, tears streaming down her face, was cradling one of her hands in the other, running over to Izzy.

"What's wrong, Anita?" Izzy asked, kneeling down so they were eye level.

The little girl swallowed her tears. "I was reaching for my doll, and my hand got scratched on the rain gutter." She held up her hand. It was bleeding pretty badly and bits of rust clung around the wound, but Izzy just smiled, shaking her head. She took Anita's small hand in hers, holding her fingers above the wound.

"Cure," she whispered. A small flash of green mist went from Izzy's fingers into Anita's wound, sealing it shut. "Good as new," Izzy said, letting go so Anita could examine her hand. That was a trick Izzy had realized she could do shortly after gaining the Keyblade. She could heal injures, illnesses, even be the antidote to poisons, which she'd found out when Owen had been bitten by a snake. Bigger things left Izzy exhausted, but a small cut like this was no problem. Anita quickly gave her a hug before letting go so Izzy could head out.

Alec met up with her as she made her way to the pawn shop.

"Just another successful adventure for Izzy, hero of our rotting world," he said, walking along side her. Izzy laughed.

"I didn't even tell you the best part," she said.

"There's a better part than fighting a monster and saving a rich guy?"

Izzy nodded, stopping outside the shop. "Just before he left, I asked him where he was from. He told me he'd come from some place called Hollow Bastion."

"Hollow Bastion?" Alec frowned. "I've never heard of it. Is that the name of the higher end place on the far side of town near the castle?"

Izzy shook her head, getting excited. "No, Alec. He told me that Hollow Bastion is the name of another world."

"Another world? You mean, like, an entirely different world?" Alec pointed up at the stars while Izzy nodded, even more enthusiastic. "I didn't really believe they were real."

"You didn't believe they were real?" Izzy looked surprised. "Where did you think Owen and Maya came from? Or almost half the kids? Or even me?"

Embarrassed, Alec shrugged, looking at the ground, then at the ring on the chain around Izzy's neck. "I mean, they just didn't seem real, and stuff."

Izzy laughed. "You know, for fifteen you can sure act like your still eleven sometimes, Alec."

Alec shrugged again, but he smiled at her, looking her in the eye. They were almost the same height, Alec now being just a little taller than she was. He looked like he was about to say something, then he noticed movement behind Izzy, and his entire expression changed.

"Look out!" he warned, moving to push Izzy out of the way, but she had already spun around, Keyblade appearing in her hand. She swung it in front of her, slashing straight through the small shadow monster that had tried to jump her. It vanished and Izzy crossed her arms, turning back to Alec.

"There seem to be more and more of them," Izzy said. "When I destroy one, it's like there are three more taking its place."

"It a good thing you got that Keyblade then," Alec said, nodding to the weapon still in Izzy's had. "You wouldn't be able to deal with them otherwise."

"I think you have that wrong, Alec dear." Both Alec and Izzy jumped, turning to face the newcomers who were crossing the street. While Alec looked surprised, Izzy looked irritated. Eliza, followed as always by Celino. Izzy hadn't seen Eliza since the warehouse incident, and Celino even longer. Alec had kept in touch and it was through him that Izzy knew Celino had proposed to Eliza. She'd rejected him, but Celino continued to be near, to protect her and be there in the event that Eliza ever changed her mind.

"The Keyblade didn't come because of the Heartless," Eliza was saying, stopping in front of them, her arms folded across her body. "The Heartless come because of the Keyblade."

"Eliza, you don't know what you're talking about," Alec said, while Izzy asked, "What are Heartless?"

Eliza laughed, acting like she was so much smarter than Izzy. Celino smirked, like he was silently agreeing with that. "Heartless are all those monsters that have been running around. Really, Isabella, didn't you even try to figure out what you were up against?"

"How do you know this?"

"In my profession, you come across tons of information." Celino frowned when Eliza said this, but she didn't notice and kept talking. "I also happen to spend time in the library. Or what's left of it after that fire." Izzy flinched. Yeah, she may or may not have been partially responsible for the library fire, but that monster, a Heartless apparently, had been more responsible.

"What did you mean," Alec began, "when you said the Heartless came because of Izzy's Keyblade?"

"I meant exactly what I said," Eliza said, tossing a book on the ground in front of them.

The Keyblade vanished from Izzy's hand as she bent down to pick up the book. It was old, and badly damaged, from both water and fire. She opened it to find all the wording was hand written, with black and white sketches here and there. Most of the pages were faded, some were torn or even missing entirely. Izzy paused on a page, less damaged than the others, that showed a drawing of a Keyblade exactly like hers. On the next page were some smaller drawings of Keyblades, all of different designs.

"Turn the page," Eliza instructed. Izzy did, reading the three short notes written there:

_'The Heartless are drawn to the Keyblade. They want to destroy its wielder before he destroys them.'_

_'The Keybearer shatters the peace and brings ruin.'_

_'All worlds will fall if the Keybearer...'_

The last entry was torn, the bottom of the page looking like it had been eaten away by insects long ago. Izzy stared at the page while Alec read over her shoulder.

"That can't be true," Alec said, shaking his head. "Look, that's three different hand writings. Three different people's opinions."

"But they're all saying the same thing." This was the first time Celino had spoke. He was pointing at Izzy. "That weapon and the person who uses it bring nothing but darkness. It's evil, and we can't allow it to exist in our world."

Alec took a step towards Celino, clenching his fists. "What are you saying, Celino?"

"We're saying," Eliza answered for him, still acting haughty. "That, for the good of all, Isabella must stop with this nonsense."

"Nonsense?"

"Yes, Alec, nonsense. She's playing like she's a hero. Like she's better than the street rat she really is. Like the rest of us are. But, unlike before, she's putting all of us in danger with that stupid Key of hers. Not only will she end up dead, but she's dragging the rest of the world down with her. Isabella has to give up that Key or leave this world before it's too late."

"Izzy's been saving people," Alec snapped, Izzy too absorbed in the book to defend herself. "She's a good person. Which is more than I can say for either of you." Alec may have been good at swordplay, but Celino had brute force on his side. With one swing of his fist, colliding painfully with Alec's jaw, the smaller boy was on the ground. This snapped Izzy out of her daze.

"No!" she cried, dropping the book and holding Alec back when he jumped to his feet, ready to throw himself at Celino, who just smirked again. "Stop this! We're supposed to be friends, remember?"

"Friends?" Eliza spat out the word. "Friends look out for each other. They pay attention and understand how the others really feel. They make each other feel like equals, not useless good for nothings who have to sell their soul just to be helpful for once." Celino, Alec, and Izzy all stared at Eliza, who was suddenly holding back tears. Izzy let go of Alec, but she didn't have to worry about him attacking Celino. They were all processing what Eliza had just said.

_He offered me munny. More munny than Izzy's ever brought back._

That's what Eliza had said, two years ago, when she'd tried to explain why she sold her body that first time. It had then just sounded like she had wanted to help. No one had realized the real explanation.

"You did it," Izzy said slowly, walking towards Eliza, "because of me. You wanted to do more than me. No, that's not it." She examined her old friend's face. Her eyes were still so sad. "You wanted to prove yourself to us. To me?" Eliza backed away, wiping her eyes and trying to gather had hardness she'd worn for two years. Could this be my fault? Izzy wondered. Did Eliza end up on this path because of the showoff I am?

"Don't be stupid," Eliza snapped. "Why would I ever prove myself to you? You're just a kid. Two years younger than me. Even at sixteen you're still so…"

"Come with me," Izzy said quickly, before Eliza could build up her walls again.

"What?"

"Others worlds. Away from this rotting world we've been trapped in. I have the Keyblade. We don't have to worry. Come on."

"Izzy." Alec was looking at her with an expression she couldn't read. "You don't have to leave because of them. They're wrong. The Keyblade's not why the Heartless are here."

"No, Alec," Izzy sighed. "It is. You don't understand, but I can feel it. I won't give up the Keyblade, even if it were possible. And even if it I wasn't putting everyone in danger, I don't want to stay here." She couldn't look at him while she spoke, her hand going to the ring on the chain. "There are other worlds I want see. I don't belong here. I never have. It's time for me to leave. To get out of this prison. To be free for once in my life."

Without Izzy wanting it to, the Keyblade appeared in her hand. At first, she thought it was an automatic reaction to some sort of danger she was in, but they were alone on the street. Her heart stopped as the Keyblade shattered, glimmering bits of metal and magic shining in the gaslight. The horror she felt quickly turned to amazement as the Keyblade reformed.

It still vaguely resembled a key, but the blade was black, with a double helix of purple and silver twirling around it. The teeth of the key were now three waves of black, silver, and purple, and the part that surrounded the hilt of the blade now looked like a silver heart. Formerly, a chain with a crown charm hung from the very end. Now the charm was a purple heart.

Holding the new Keyblade out in front of her, Izzy could see that is was longer and lighter. She smiled. "I think that means I'm making the right choice."

The other three stared at her, each wearing a different expression. Alec looked amazed and in awe. Celino looked dumbstruck. Eliza looked terrified. When Izzy looked away from teh Keyblade, she was Eliza backing away.

"No," she was saying, shaking her head. "Whatever that thing is, whatever you are now, I don't want to have thing to do with it!" Eliza turned and ran. Celino shook himself out of his shock and then ran after her.

"Eliza!" Izzy took two steps after her, but stopped. She'd made her choice. Fine. "Here," she said, putting the ruby ring into Alec's hand. "Get the money for this. I have something I need to take care of." Izzy turned and ran off in the opposite direction before Alec had a chance to ask her anything.


	5. Chapter Five: Gizmo, Gadget, and Gummi

On the far side of the city, opposite the docks and the rotting alleys, closer to the castle, stood Drills and Bits, the shop of the best mechanic in almost all the worlds, Emmet the Wrench. He was dubbed this nickname not because of his go to tool, but because if he caught any street kids near his shop he'd throw a wrench at them. Emmet had been gifted with excellent accuracy. So, smart kids stayed as far away from Drills and Bits as possible. There was, however, a loophole, for those in dire need and who knew when The Wrench was at lunch.

Izzy hesitated for a moment, checking the time on the clock tower, before pushing through the swinging doors in the back of the shop. "Gizmo!" she called, stepping over a pool of oil. "Gadget!"

"Yeah?" came the twin replies, before the actual twins appeared from behind what looked to be part of a train. Ryan and Corbin, Emmet's apprentices and nephews. The kids in the alley, especially Alec, considered the twins to be very lucky. Their father had been a knight, and though both their parents had been killed when King Alfred took over, their uncle had taken them in and taught them the tools of his trade. These two sixteen year olds knew more about machines than anyone in all the worlds.

Most people found them to be weird and annoying, as they had a tendency to speak in unison, finish each other's sentences, and preferred to be called Gizmo and Gadget. Izzy, however, had always been found of them, calling them by their chosen nicknames. They were the only two people who were actually allowed to call her Isabella.

"Hey guys," she said.

"Isabella!" they said, dropping whatever they had been working on and heading over.

"To what do we owe the pleasure?" Gizmo asked.

"I need a favor."

"It would be an honor to assist the rumored hero," Gadget said with a bow. "Of course, you'll have to do us the honor," he added.

"Of letting us see your Keyblade," they finished together.

Though they were both blonde, tall, and completely identically, Izzy could tell the two brothers apart. It helped that Gizmo had a fondness for goggles and Gadget was left handed.

Smiling, Izzy held up her hand, causing the Keyblade to appear. She handed it to the eager brothers, who spent five seconds examining every part of the weapon, before it vanished from their grasp and returned to Izzy's.

"Hey!" they objected.

"Sorry boys," Izzy said. "It always does that. I can't do a thing about it." They looked disappointed for a moment, but quickly got over it.

"So, what did you want, Isabella?"

"Better be quick," Gadget was saying, heading back to the train car. "Uncle should be back in about ten minutes."

"This won't take long," she promised. "I just wanted to ask if you knew where I could find a ship to take me to other worlds."

The boys looked completely offended.

"Isabella, do you have that little faith in us?"

"Do you just think we're your ordinary repairmen?"

"That our skills just range from fixing a tire?"

"To changing the oil?"

"Do we just look like."

"Newsies to you?"

"We aren't the local gossips."

"If you're just looking for information."

"See the old maids in the marketplace." They finished together, crossing their arms and turning away. Izzy smiled.

"So, does that mean _you _have a ship that can travel to other worlds? I don't believe it."

If they'd looked offended before, it was nothing compared how they looked now.

"She has no faith in us," Gadget said.

"None at all," Gizmo agreed.

"After all we've done."

"I thought our street cred was better than that."

"Well, brother, we'll just have to prove her wrong."

"We will indeed, brother."

Gizmo grabbed Izzy's hand and dragged her to the back while Gadget ran ahead, pulling an old sheet off something that had been tucked away, unnoticed in the far corner.

"What do you have to say to this?" they demanded, crossing their arms. Izzy stared.

It was a ship. The strangest ship Izzy had ever seen. True, she never exactly paid attention to the ships that flew overhead before, but this was surely one of a kind. It was a mix between Frankenstein's monster, a patchwork quilt, and a prize winning racecar. Though it had been painted all red, it was clear that none of the pieces had been originally intended to go together. One wing was whole, while the other was made of six different pieces and what looked to be a rake, the nose started to curve smothly, then jutted in a different direction, and the door was surely something to comment on. Despite all this, the twins had made it work.

"You guys built this?" Izzy slowly circled the ship, taking it all in.

"Of course we did," Gizmo said.

"It took us two years," Gadget added.

"And seven hundred and twenty-three gummi blocks," Gizmo finished.

"Gummi blocks?" Izzy was no mechanic but she'd never heard of gummi anything before.

"The only material that can travel between worlds."

"We get a lot of weird customers, but all their ships are made from the same material."

"It wasn't the design or building that took so long."

"It was the gathering enough spare parts."

"Can it fly?" she asked.

"Yes," Gadget answered.

"Theoretically," Gizmo added.

"I mean, we've gotten it up and working around here."

"But we've never taken it to other worlds before."

Stilling examining the ship, Izzy asked, "What's it run on?"

The twins frowned, looking at each other. Gadget answered first. "We really don't know."

"We have some idea, but it's too ridiculous to be true."

"What would that be?"Izzy was not to be deterred.

"Happy faces," they said together.

Izzy blinked, sure she'd misheared them. "Come again?"

"Well," Gizmo said, messing with his goggles, "we noticed that when a lot of happy people have been around it, it flies better."

"It flies even better when the person flying it is happy." Gadget paused, giving Izzy a look. "Why?"

They leaned against the ship, saying together, "Planning a little trip, Isabella?"

"More like and extended vacation," she said honestly.

"So you really are leaving?" They all turned to see Alec standing in the door, a bag of what Izzy assumed to be munny from the ring tied to his hip.

"That wasn't clear?" Izzy couldn't figure out why Alec looked so upset. Gizmo and Gadget looked at each other, then quickly went back to working on the train car, still clearly listening to everything. Trying not the knock over any of the tool boxes, Izzy walked over to Alec. "Did you sell the ring?"

"Yeah, they gave me a good deal." Alec's hazel eyes were scanning Izzy's face, holding a question he didn't seem to want to ask.

"Good," Izzy said, crossing her arms. "While I'm gone, you're in charge. I'll send back whatever I get, but I don't know how long that'll take, so you may have to find a job. Owen and Maya, too. They're old enough to run errands around town. Remember not to spend too much in one place, or they'll think you stole it. And make sure Anita…"

"You didn't ask me." Alec cut her off, unable to take how casual she was being about leaving.

"I didn't ask you what?"

He groaned. "To go with you, Izzy. You didn't ask me to go see other worlds with you. You asked Eliza, who basically hates you, the very moment you decided to leave, but you didn't ask me, your best friend. God, you're still not asking me. You're not even considering it. You're just standing there, telling me things I already know."

Izzy frowned, biting her lip. She couldn't come up with an answer to that. "I asked Eliza," she began slowly, "because, I don't know, I feel guilty, I guess. Maybe it's my fault she's not that sweet bookworm anymore. I know she doesn't really hate me, and I just wanted a chance to fix things."

"Okay, fine, that makes sense. But you're still not even bothering to ask me to come."

"I, well, isn't it obvious? Alec, you have to watch out for everyone. You're the oldest. There's no one else they'll be able to count on when I'm gone. You're the only one I can count on when I'm gone." It was obvious, wasn't it? Of course she'd like Alec to come along, but leaving the kids without anyone was just cruel. "Besides, you want to become a knight, right? You can't do that if you're not here."

"What!" Alec looked shocked. How could she have known that? He'd never told anyone before. She was right, but still. "Izzy, how could you think that I'd ever be a knight for King Alfred? After all that son of a bitch has done? He killed my parents!"

"I know that, Alec," Izzy said gently. "But I also know he won't be king forever. I can't let you miss your shot because of me."

Alec stared at Izzy for a long moment. It could be years before circumstances changed enough for him to have a chance to get his dream. Was she really planning to be gone for that long? At a loss for words, he just started laughing. "You're right Izzy. Thinking with your head, as always." While Izzy was giving Alec a very worried look, the twins exchanged a different look, shaking their heads before getting involved again.

"Well," Gizmo said, jumping up and rubbing his hands together. "Looks like it's settled. A trip to other worlds for one."

"Go home and say your goodbyes," Gadget instructed. "Then be here first thing in the morning. Better to take off without a permit before anyone's watching."

"Can't I go now?" Izzy asked.

"No!" Alec's voice was added to the unison this time.

"We need time to prepare," Gadget said.

"The kids would be heartbroken if you didn't say goodbye," Alec added.

"And, Isabella," Gizmo said gently, "you know we think you're great, but you're travelling to other worlds. Wash up and buy new clothes."

Alec dragged Izzy away before she could smack Gizmo for that last comment.

Seriously, when was the last time I've cried so much? Izzy wondered, hugging Anita again. Probably never.

When she'd announced she was leaving, she had been met with objections and outrage. It had taken twenty minutes and Alec's help to keep her friends from tying her up so she couldn't leave. Later, it had taken another twenty minutes for Alec to convince Izzy to use some of the ring money and take Gizmo's advice.

As she said her last goodbyes and began walking away from the alley, Izzy's hair was clean and brushed, and she wore new clothes. New as in brand new, not used. Nothing fancy, just a jean skirt, red lace up shoes, and a blue top with flowing sleeves, but it was the nicest thing Izzy had ever worn before. Slinging the bag of keepsakes her friends had given her over her shoulder, Izzy stepped into Drills and Bits, seeing the twins racing around with last minute preparations.

"Navigation set in the right language?"

"Check! Wing span adjusted?"

"Check! Are all the monitors working?"

"Check! Did you fix the chameleon circuit?"

"Check! Did you make sure the turbo boost was recalibrated?"

"You don't recalibrate a turbo boost."

"Oh. Then what did I just do?"

"You adjusted the cup holders."

"Awesome! Then we're good to go."

"Roger that. Oh, there you are, Isabella."

Izzy was laughing while also trying not to cry. She was really going to miss them.

"You ready to go?" Gizmo asked.

"As I was ready yesterday, I'm assuming I'm still ready today." Izzy suddenly found herself being hugged by both Gizmo and Gadget.

"We're going to miss you, Isabella."

"Do something awesome."

"Be safe."

"Bring us back something cool." They let go, Gizmo messing with his goggles, while Gadget went over and opened the door to the ship, quickly showing Izzy how to pilot the thing. It wasn't difficult, but she was mildly concerned about the idea of landing. Just before Izzy climbed into the ship, she felt someone tap her on the shoulder, and turned to see Alec.

"Didn't we already say goodbye?" Izzy asked while Gizmo and Gadget suddenly made themselves scarce.

"Izzy, I'm not going to see you for a while. Don't ruining it by being sarcastic." Alec took her hand, sliding a thin, silver band onto her wrist. A black circular charm with an engraving of a white lion hung from the bangle. "That was my family crest," he said, nodding to the lion. "The bracelet was my mother's."

"Your mother's? No, I can't accept this, Alec." Izzy moved to take off the bangle, but Alec stopped her, holding on to her hand.

"Izzy, I want you to have it. To remember me, well, to remember all of us. Please," he begged, letting go of her hands, "just take it."

She looked down at the bracelet on her wrist and nodded. "Alright, Alec."

He half smiled at her, reaching up to hold the ring on her chain between his fingers. "Go find out where this is from, and what that weird writing says, okay?"

Izzy rolled her eyes. "Alright, Alec." She was suddenly very aware of how close Alec was to her. Her eyes met his, realizing for the first time that she might never see him again. Alec let the ring drop from his grasp, pulling Izzy into a hug.

"Come back," he said into her ear before letting go. "You know, cause Owen, and Maya, and Anita, and Kitty, and everyone's going to miss you." He swallowed, not looking at her. "We're all going to really miss you."

Before Izzy could reply, the twins had appeared again, Gizmo ushering her to the ship while Gadget ran off to press a button on the wall. The roof of the shop began to open, revealing the early morning sky, while Izzy climbed into the ship.

"Remember, left one's break, right one's gas, middle one's the steering wheel," Gimzo said before slamming the door tightly shut. "Good luck!"

He jumped away from the ship and went to stand by his brother. Izzy looked out the window, seeing the twins waving. Her eyes met Alec's. When he smiled, Izzy smiled back, and then turned to look up at the sky.

"Well, here goes nothing," she said to herself, hitting the ignition.


	6. Chapter Six: A New Groove

Covered in mud, new clothes ripped by thorns, bugs enjoying an all-you-can-eat buffet of her blood, and probably about to be eaten by jaguars. Izzy couldn't stop grinning.

She was in a jungle. A real live, tree covered, bug infected, crawling with predators, no sign of civilization jungle! How awesome was that? Sure, those yellow eyes that kept appearing in the trees were looking at her like she was on the menu for that night, but she figured if her Keyblade could take out a Heartless, she wouldn't have too much trouble with some jungle cats. Besides, Izzy was very certain if she just kept quiet they wouldn't bother her.

The far off noise of what sounded like someone bursting a balloon animal with a needle caught her attention. When it was followed by the sound of desperate screaming, Izzy took off running, careful not to trip over any logs. The screaming was getting louder, and Izzy assumed she was heading in the right direction, so she was really surprised when out of the trees burst a screaming person.

Oh, wait, not person. That was definitely a llama. Being chased by a pack of jaguars. And now Izzy was also being chased by a pack of jaguars.

"Thank the gods! A person." Izzy did a double take, which, as she was running, almost resulted in her falling.

"Did you just talk?"

"Yes, I'm a talking llama," snapped the talking llama. "And I'm also your emperor. So, quick, protect me!"

"Okay, first," Izzy began, jumping over a log lying in the path. "I don't have an emperor. Second, they were chasing you, so they are very much your problem!"

"Yeah, but now they're chasing you. So now they're your problem."

Wow, outdebated by a llama. Why did she think going to other worlds would be fun, again? Before Izzy could think up with a decent comeback, they broke through the trees and found themselves right on the edge of a cliff. Izzy spun around to face the oncoming pack while the llama cowered behind her.

"Do something!" he cried, grabbing onto her in a very unllama-like manner.

"Let go of me!" Izzy snapped, trying to get her arm free so she could summon the Keyblade. Just when the jaguars were about to pounce, a large man in a green poncho swung out of the trees, clinging to a vine and screaming like an Incan Tarzan. The jaguars all stepped out of the way, so he swung through, grabbing the llama and, because the llama was still clinging to her, Izzy.

"Don't worry, your Highness," he said, while both Izzy and the llama were screaming. "I gotcha. You're safe now. Huh?" He noticed Izzy for the first time. "Who are you?"

"I'm Izzy!" she called. "And I would appreciate it if…." At that moment, the vine broke, and they found themselves freefalling before the vine wrapped itself around a think tree branch, tying all three of them to it.

"Maybe I'm new to this whole rescuing thing," Izzy heard the llama saying as she tried to struggle out of the bindings, "but this, to me, might be considered kind of a step backwards, wouldn't you say?"

"No," was Poncho Man's reply. "No, no. It's, it's okay. This, this is all right. We can figure this out."

"Yeah," Izzy said, working to untangle herself from the vine. "I just have to…" She pulled her arm free with a jerk, then froze at the sound of the branch beginning to break away from the tree.

"I hate you," said that llama.

"That better not be directed at me," Izzy muttered as the branch broke free, sending all of them down, screaming through the air, slash landing in a river.

"I don't know about you," said the llama as the floating log began to steady out, "but I'm getting all funned out."

"Okay, you really need to…" Izzy began, but she was cut off.

"Uh-oh." Poncho Man was facing the direction the log was moving. Clearly, whatever he was seeing, it wasn't good.

"Don't tell me. We're about to go over a huge waterfall." The talking llama sounded strangely calm.

"Yep."

"Sharp rocks at the bottom?"

"Most likely."

There was a short pause. Then, "Bring it on."

"So, he's really the emperor?"

"Emperor Kuzco, that's right."

"And he's been put under some sort of spell."

"That what he tells me." When the log landed in the river at the bottom of the waterfall, Izzy managed to use the Keyblade to cut away the vines. Now, she and Pacha were making their way to the banks of the river, Pacha dragging the unconscious, soaking, emperor llama behind him.

"That is so awesome!" Izzy started wringing the water out of her hair, while Pacha gave her a strange look.

"Why would that be awesome to you? Where are you from, anyway?"

"Uh." Izzy had already decided that going around advertising she was from other worlds might not be the best idea. Especially if the people from the world she was visiting didn't know other world's even existed. Which is why she'd parked the Gummi Ship out in the middle of the jungle and why she now decided it would be best to change the subject. "He doesn't look so good," Izzy said, nodding at Kuzco. "He may need mouth to mouth."

"What?" Pacha looked down at the unconscious llama. "I can't do that."

"Well he's your emperor."

Izzy watched as Pacha dealt with this new problem. When his expression became determined and he repositioned Kuzco's llama head, Izzy had to cover her eyes. "Oh gross."

Kuzco seemed to agree with her, because a nice little dramatic freak out followed a few moments after.

A while later, Izzy and Pacha were sitting around a fire, Kuzco having gone off to sulk.

"Okay, let me get this straight. He wants to turn your whole village into his personal water park, and you still saved him?"

"Well, yeah. I couldn't just let him die."

"That's noble of you. But are you seriously just going to help him get back to the palace?"

"Only if he promises to choose another hilltop for his water park."

"What if he doesn't change his mind?"

"He will," Pacha said, tending the fire. "He wants to go home. Besides, deep down he has to know that forcing so many people out of their homes for his own personal enjoyment is wrong. No one's that heartless."

Izzy frowned, looking over at Kuzco's silhouette, sitting just outside of the fire light, his back to them. "We'll see," she said, getting up.

"What about you?" Pacha asked. "Will you help him if I don't?"

"Nah," Izzy said. "I'm just along for the ride." She walked over and stood behind Kuzco for a moment, then started walking in a circle, inspecting him closely.

"What are you doing?" he demanded, sounding irritated.

"I've never seen someone become a Heartless before," Izzy said. "I don't want to miss anything."

"Is that just a clever way of calling me selfish, cause Honey, I've heard enough of that tonight."

"No," she said, shaking her head. "I mean, you're actually becoming a Heartless. A big, evil, mindless monster, completely alone in the world."

"Girl, I'm already a llama. Being a monster won't be much worse."

"At least now you have a shot at becoming human again." She stopped circling, standing directly in front of Kuzco. "When you're a Heartless, it's all over. And then I'll have to destroy you with this." Izzy held out her hand, and the Keyblade appeared in all its glory. Kuzco was very unimpressed.

"Oh, magic, colorful sword, I'm so scared," he scoffed. "I've been turned into a llama. You'll have to do something a lot more impressive than that to scare me."

Izzy crossed her arms, utterly infuriated with the spoiled emperor. "You know what? You're hopeless, and selfish, and I can't believe someone as nice as Pacha would even bother with you." She turned and stormed back towards the fire. "One day, you're going to end up all alone, and you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

"Thanks for that!" Kuzco called after her.

Izzy opened her eyes, disoriented at the sight of a jungle canopy above her. For a moment, she couldn't figure out why she wasn't leaning on the alley wall, wrapped up in her tattered blanket.

"Are you saying… you've changed your mind?"

"Oh, well, I… I…"

"Because you know that means you're doing something nice for someone else."

"No, I know that. I know."

"And you're alright with that?"

"Yes."

Looking around, Izzy sat up, pulling bits of twig and leaf out of her hair. She saw a llama and a guy in a poncho sitting together. Oh yeah. Talking llama, spells, water parks, it was all coming back now. Pacha was holding his hand out.

"Don't shake," he was saying, "unless you mean it." Kuzco held up his hoof and they shook. It was a pretty weird sight. "All right. Let's get you back to the palace. Izzy, wake up."

"Already up," Izzy said, jumping to her feet. "We all good? No more water parks for llamas?"

Pacha smiled. "It's all sorted. Kuzco will go back to the palace, I'll go home to my family, and you go, eh, back to whatever it is you're from, Izzy." He and Kuzco started off. Izzy looked over at a squirrel who was sitting nearby, nibbling on an acorn.

"I'm pretty sure I made that happen," Izzy said, to which the squirrel seemed to roll his eyes.

Izzy hurried after them, and the three traveled along in a very cordial, very uneventful, manner. Until they reached a thin, rickety rope bridge that spanned the length of a deep canyon.

"Okay, once we cross this bridge, it's only an hour to the palace," Pacha announced, starting across the old, rope bridge.

"Good," Kuzco replied, following after him, "because believe it or not, I think I need a bath."

"I believe it," Izzy said, taking up the rear.

"What was that?"

"Noth… Aaah!" The next step Izzy took was across boards already weakened by Pacha and Kuzco. They broke apart under her weight, sending the girl right through the bridge.

"Izzy!" Pacha quickly stepped around Kuzco, hurrying back to the hole where she vanished. More boards broke and Pacha fell through as well.

"Wow," Izzy was saying. "It's a really good thing you guys have so many vines around here." She and Pacha were both tangled up in the vines that hung down beneath the bridge. "Otherwise, we'd be so dead now."

"Kuzco!" Pacha was calling while Izzy wondered if she could climb up the vines like a rope. "Quick, help us up!"

"No, I don't think I will," was Kuzco's reply.

"What?" Izzy yelled.

Pacha's face paled. "You're just going to leave us here?"

Kuzco looked down at them between the gaps in the boards. "Well, I was going to have you both imprisoned for life, but I like this better."

"So all of that was a lie?"

"Well, yeah. No wait." Looking up, Izzy could see the llama pretend to think about it, then nod. "Uh, yeah, yeah it was all a lie. Toddles." He started walking across the bridge again.

"You're nothing more than a Heartless in the making!" Izzy yelled, struggling to untangle herself from the vines. "When I get up there you are so going to pay!"

"Yeah, we'll see about that," Kuzco muttered. Four steps, two rotting boards, and one short fall later Kuzco was tangled in the vines next to Pacha.

"Are you okay?" Pacha was asking. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Kuzco said, breathing quickly and looking freaked out. "Yeah, I think I'm all right."

"Good." Pacha promptly punched Kuzco in the face, causing him to swing back. "That's for going back on your promise!"

"Whoo! Go Pacha!" Izzy cheered, but she was soon silenced when Pacha crashed into her because Kuzco had swung back and hit him.

"That's for kidnapping me and taking me to your village… which I'm still going to destroy by the way." While Kuzco laughed, Izzy shoved Pacha as hard as she could, hearing Kuzco whimper "No touchy," before Pacha smashed into him.

"Why did I risk my life for a selfish brat like you?" Pacha growled. "I was always taught that there was some good in every one, but, ooh, you proved me wrong."

"Oh boo-hoo," Kuzco mocked. "Now I feel bad. Bad llama."

"You can't trust royals," Izzy muttered. "They're the same in every world. Selfish, meant only to make your life miserable."

"Let's end this," said Pacha.

"Ladies first." These words were probably directed at Pacha, but Izzy responded first.

"My pleasure." She swung around Pacha, kicking Kuzco in the face.

"Hey!" A general brawl started, shaking the few ropes that remained of the bridge and weakening the vines.

"Ow! No weapons!"

"Izzy, that's _my_ hair."

"Sorry Pacha! Ouch! Really, Kuzco? Biting? You think I won't bite back?"

"Hey! Crazy vampire lady!"

A number of loud snapping noises forced the three of them to freeze and look up. The vines had reached their limit and began breaking. They all scrambled to get a hold of something, but only Izzy managed to hold onto the one vine that didn't break. She watched in horror as Pacha and Kuzco fell down the crevice, coming to a rocky stop at almost the very bottom, just above snapping crocodile jaws.

"What are we going to do?" Kuzco cried. "We're gonna die! We're gonna die! That's it for me!" He started sobbing.

"Kuzco, just shut up!" Holding tightly to the vine, Izzy looked down at them and then up at the top of the ridge. "Okay, I have an idea. I'll climb up…."

"And then leave us here!"

"God, Kuzco, I'm not you. Just shut the hell up!" Izzy let out a breath. "As I was saying, I'll climb up, and lower that vine as far as it will go. All you have to do is get far enough up to grab on and I'll pull you up."

Izzy started climbing up, hearing Pacha and Kuzco bicker about how they'd get up, and then about whose right they'd start with. "Guys!" Izzy snapped once she was out of the canyon and lowering down the vine. "Remember, it's life or death here!"

Lowering the vine as far as she could, Izzy watched as they linked arms and slowly made their way up the crevice, walking one step at a time. As they got close, Pacha reached up, his fingers just inches away from the vine.

"Izzy, lower it just a little more!"

"That's as far as I can lower it!" she called back. "Just come up farther."

"We can't!" Pacha thought for a moment. "Okay, Kuzco, stretch out your neck and I'll grab the rope."

"How do I know you won't let me fall after you grab the rope?" Kuzco asked.

"You're just gonna have to trust me!"

The next couple moments went by too quickly for Izzy to follow. Kuzco was making a fat comment, then there were scorpions, small caves, bats, and flying llamas. Suddenly, Kuzco and Pacha were both out of the crevice, landing behind Izzy. They took her by surprise and she ended up falling over the edge of the canyon. Pacha reached out and grabbed her wrist, but the edge started to crumble, threatening to send them both down to the crocodiles below. Kuzco quickly reached his head out, grabbing onto the back of Pacha's poncho with his teeth and yanking both of them back to safety. While Izzy and Pacha sat on the ground stunned, Kuzco was celebrating.

"Whoo-hoo! Yeah! Oh, look at me and my bad self. I snatched you two right out of the air. 'Oooh, I'm a crumbly canyon wall and I'm taking you with me.' Well not today, pal. Uh-huh. Uh-huh uh-huh, uh-huh. Uh-huh!"

Pacha and Izzy looked at each other, then back at Kuzco. It was strange to watch a llama do a victory dance.

"You saved our lives," Izzy said, slowly getting up.

Kuzco stopped dancing. "Huh? So?"

"I knew it." Pacha sounded very pleased. "There is some good in you after all."

"Uh, no."

"Admit it."

"Wrong."

"Yes there is."

"No way."

"You could have let as fall," Izzy pointed out.

"Yeah, well, whatever. Come on, what's the big deal? Nobody's that heartless." Seeing both Pacha and Izzy's smile, Kuzco rolled his eyes. "Don't read too much into it. It was a onetime thing."

Pacha laughed. "Right. Well, we better get a move on. It's a four day walk to the palace with the bridge out."

"What?" It was Kuzco's turned to be stunned. "You're still taking me back?"

"Well, I promised."

"Yeah, well." It took Kuzco a moment to regain his composure. "This doesn't change anything. I'm still building Kuzcotopia when I get back."

"Four days is a long time," Pacha said, beginning to walk into the woods. "Maybe you'll change your mind."

"We'll see." Kuzco followed after Pacha, with Izzy alongside them. "Four days, huh? What are the chances of you carrying me?"

"Not good."

"Izzy?"

"I will stab you with this Keyblade."

"Noted."

"Low blood sugar, huh?"

"Yeah, it's a curse."

Izzy rolled her eyes. Somehow or another, Kuzco had actually gotten Pacha to carry him. They'd reached a point where there was a true path through the woods. Izzy was starting to look forward to seeing a part of this world that wasn't all jungle. Pacha was suggesting they find somewhere to eat, when Izzy noticed something moving in the corner of her eye.

"Get down!" she cried, diving forward, sending all three of them sprawling.

"What's going on?" both Pacha and Kuzco said, though it was easier to understand Pacha because the latter was squashed beneath the former. Izzy didn't have to answer, as a small, red winged Heartless flew over head.

Izzy jumped up, her Keyblade already out as she slashed through it, not surprised to see three more already dive bombing them.

"What are they?" Kuzco coughed, dragging himself out from beneath Pacha.

"It's doesn't matter," Izzy said, dodging an attack. "Run!" The three started running, Izzy trying to fight off the Heartless as the appeared, but more and more swarmed from the trees, all of them targeting Kuzco.

"You guys get out of here," Izzy finally said. "I can deal with this and meet up with you later."

"But…"

"Go!" The fire ball a Heartless threw at them kept Pacha from arguing more. He grabbed Kuzco and started running. Izzy turned back, ducking as another fireball was aimed for her head. "Just like back home," she smiled, charging.

"So, you're saying they're not here?"

"That's what I'm saying, hun. No llamas allowed. Sign says so out front. There was a guy like the one you described though. But he wasn't with no llama. He was with his wife."

"His wife?" Izzy was standing in the restaurant closest to where she'd spent twenty minutes fighting the pack of Heartless. Now, adding to the damage toll, Izzy was not only covered in mud and wearing tattered clothes, but she'd also gained a number of scorch marks.

"Lovely couple. Not like that big guy and skinny old woman who was scary beyond all reason."

"That means nothing to me." Izzy sighed while the waitress walked off, calling something about deep friend doorknobs. "Thanks anyway." Feeling pretty abandoned, she walked out of the restaurant, looking around. Wow, they totally left her behind. What the hell was that about?

"Oh, this entire mess is your fault!"

"What'd I do?"

Acting on impulse, Izzy ducked behind a tree, peering around to look at the speakers. "Okay, that woman looks scary beyond all reason," she muttered, watching.

"If you hadn't mixed up those potions," the old woman was saying, "Kuzco would be dead by now! There will be no more diversions until we track that llama down and kill him!"

Izzy covered her mouth, stifling a gasp, while the big guy apologized. "I said I was sorry. Can't we just let it go? Not even on your birthday."

"Kuzco must be eliminated!" she screeched. "The empire will finally be rid of that useless slug."

"You've got a point," the big guy agreed. "Nobody really seems to care he's gone, do they?"

Izzy sprinted off into the woods while they laughed. "I have to warn them," she gasped, hurtling over some logs.

'Why?' asked a very random little voice. 'They left you behind. And Kuzco's the one who's really in trouble. This is getting very political now. Maybe his kingdom is better without him. What do you know? This isn't your world. You just came to look around. Well, you looked, just leave.'

Surprised, Izzy misstepped, tripping over some roots and sliding across the muddy ground. What the hell? Leave them behind? How could she ever consider that? Sure, they left her, but the big guy and scary crone were there, too. Pacha and Kuzco must have just been trying to get away. Even if they had just flat out left her behind, she couldn't let them get killed. With Pacha helping Kuzco, there's no way the old lady would left him off the hook, too. Besides, Kuzco might be annoying, be he didn't deserve to be murdered.

Standing, Izzy cried out when she put pressure on her left ankle. "Damn it!" she swore, leaning against the tree. Taking a breath, Izzy put her hand over her ankle. "Cure," she whispered.

Nothing.

Great, just great. She didn't have enough strength in her to do any magic. She needed water, and food, and rest. Not like that was going to happen. She had to find Pacha and Kuzco. Angrily, she yanked a branch off the lower limbs of the tree, using it as a cane.

'See? Helping them is bringing nothing but trouble for you. You should just go…'

"Shut up!" she yelled out loud. The forest echoed for a while, then grew silent. "I need more sleep," Izzy sighed, starting forwards.

Another village on a hill. Why the hell did Kuzco want Pacha's village so damn much? They all looked exactly the same. Same height, same houses, same llama herders with green ponchos. It was ridiculous! And Izzy should know, as she'd spent the last few days trekking up and down all of them on her injured ankle and makeshift cane. By this time, lack of sleep and extreme hunger were making her really cranky.

"Excuse me," she said, hobbling up to a couple of villagers, trying to sound polite. "Does a Pacha live in this village, perhaps?"

"Oh, you must be another one of his relatives," one of the villagers said.

"Yep, that's me," she said, just going with it. "Cousin Izzy."

"Pacha's hut is at the very top of the hill, sweet heart," said the other villager.

"Thanks," Izzy started up, then paused for a moment. "Wait, what did you mean by 'another one of his relatives'?"

"Oh, he's got two others up there already," said the first villager. "A big guy and an old lady who's scary beyond any reason." Izzy was hobbling up the hillside as fast as she could before he'd finished his sentence.

Izzy could hear Pacha's voice just inside the hut as she got closer. "So we have to get back to the palace, find the lab, and change him back."

She came around the corner just in time to see Kuzco poke his head through the window and get whacked by what sounded like a frying pan. "Kuzco!" she called, hurrying over. Pacha's head came out of the window.

"Izzy?"

"Yeah, hi. Thanks, for leaving me, by the way, but more on that later." She was pulling Kuzco up. "You have to go. Those people in there are…"

"Are trying to kill Kuzco, yes, we know."

A woman looked out the window behind Pacha. "Who's that?"

"That's Izzy."

"I'm Izzy."

"Izzy and her twin." Kuzco had been hit pretty hard.

"She's been helping us," Pacha said. "Why are you limping?"

"I twisted my ankle," Izzy replied. "Don't worry about it. I just need some food and I'll be fine."

The woman handed Izzy some bread through the window. "Here. I'm Chicha."

"Thanks, Chicha." Izzy bit hungrily into the bread, devouring it almost instantly.

"You three go," Chicha said as Izzy set about healing her leg. "I'll stall long enough so you can have a head start."

"Thanks, honey," Pacha said, kissing her cheek and rushing out the door.

Izzy happily chucked the cane she'd been using as far as she could while Pacha grabbed Kuzco who was rambling something along the lines of, "You have a lovely wife. They're both very pretty."

"Was it a good idea leaving your family with those two?" Izzy asked a little later as they ran.

"Kronk and Yzma are trying to kill us, after all," Kuzco agreed.

"Oh, don't worry. They can handle themselves."

"Good to know. Now back to the whole you guys leaving me thing."

"I take full responsibility for that!" Kuzco said.

Izzy looked back at him. "Wow, she really hit you hard."

"I'm serious!"

"Huh. Well, alright then. You're forgiven."

There wasn't much time for talking as they ran. Across fields, through towns, and over bridges. Once they'd crossed a bridge, Izzy would use her Keyblade to cut the rope, in order to keep Kronk and Yzma from being able to keep up. Eventually they made it to the palace, though Izzy, much to her disappointment, had no time to sight see. The ride down to the secret lab was pretty fun, though, even if the lab itself was horribly creepy.

"What's it look like?" Izzy asked as they began to search the selves of vials.

"I don't know!" Kuzco said. "Just keep looking."

Pacha, to the others' irritation, was reading off the labels under each of the vials. "Lion, bear, tiger…. It's not here!"

"Yeah, guys, it's over there." Izzy's tone was very annoyed. Pacha and Kuzco turned to see Izzy pointing at Yzma, who was laughing hysterically and holding a vile.

"Come on, Yzma," Kuzco said, stepping forward. "I know I was harsh, but do you really want to kill me?"

"Just think of it at you're being let go, your department is being downsized, you…"

"Oh, blah, blah, blah," Izzy said, moving forward, brandishing the Keyblade. "Hand over the potion!"

"Not on your life, missy," Yzma hissed. "Kronk!"

Kronk looked nervously at Izzy, shuffling his feet. "I can't. She's just a girl."

"Oh, you're so useless!" Yzma snapped. "Very well. I'll use my new minions. I believe you've met them before. They haven't been successful yet, but I bet they'll be very useful right now." At a snap of her fingers a door flew opened and dozens of Heartless burst through. They flew at Izzy, knocking over the shelf of potions as well as knocking the vial out of Yzma's hand, mixing it with the others.

"I got the Heartless," Izzy called, jumping onto the knocked over shelf. "Find the right vial!"

"How are we supposed to do that?" Pacha asked. "They're not labled!"

"Like this." Izzy slammed a Heartless back into some others, then spun around, grabbing a vial and pouring it down Kuzco's throat. He promptly became a gecko. "Okay, that's wrong. Try another!" While Pacha started giving Kuzco different potions, she went back to fighting off the Heartless, but they were closing in fast. "Okay, new plan," Izzy announced, grabbing Kuzco, who was now a turtle, and a handful of vials. "Run!"

"Here," Pacha tried, giving Kuzco another vial, which turned him into a very small bird.

"We're not getting anywhere with you two picking the vials," Kuzco said. "I'm picking the next one."

"Fine by me," Izzy and Pacha said as Kuzco grabbed another vial and pulled it open. He drained the potion as they ran.

"Alright!" he cheered, now running beside them on all fours. "I'm a llama again! Wait…"

"Only two left," Izzy said, knocking a Heartless out from above them. They had ended up outside of the palace, very, very high up. "Just drink them!"

"Alright. Give me…."

"Aah!" Yzma came out of nowhere, grabbing at vials. One broke as she tried to run away, engulfing her in red smoke.

"Ha ha ha ha!" Menacing laughter filled the air. Kuzco and Pacha backed away while Izzy gripped the Keyblade tighter, holding it out in front of her. "Ah ha ha ha!" The smoke began to clear. "Meow?"

Izzy let out a relieved breath. Yzma had been changed into a fluffy, white kitten.

"I'll take that," Kuzco said, taking the last vial from her.

"That's the one right?" Izzy asked. "That'll turn you human again?"

"It should," Pacha said.

"No!" Yzma launched herself at Kuzco, knocking the vial towards the edge of the roof. Izzy grabbed Yzma, pulling her away, while Pacha was knocked back, barely catching himself by his fingers before he fell off the roof.

"Kuzco!" he called.

Kuzco was trying to reach the vial before could fall. "One second!"

"Izzy!"

"What?" Izzy was still dealing with both Yzma and several of the remaining Heartless. It was difficult, seeing as Yzma was a kitten and Izzy couldn't manage to hit her with the Keyblade. Seeing Pacha about to fall, she tried to run over, but got hit in the back by a fireball from one of the air born Heartless, ending up on the ground. "Kuzco!" she yelled.

"I know, I know," he replied, still trying to reach the vial.

"Kuzco!" Pacha's finger's finally slipped, but Kuzco was there to grab him before he fell. "Whoa. Thanks. Where's the vial?" The vial, which had been teetering on the edge, was gone.

"No!" Kuzco cried.

"Looking for this?" Izzy asked, holding up the vial.

While Kuzco had been saving Pacha, Izzy had managed to knock Yzma off the roof with a swing that would have made any pro baseball legend jealous. Seconds later, Izzy had been at the edge of the roof, grabbing the vial out of the air.

"Izzy, you're the greatest!" Kuzco cheered, grabbing the vial from her.

"Yeah, I know," Izzy shrugged.

"Let me get that for you," Pacha offered, taking the vial from Kuzco and pulling off the cork.

"Well," Kuzco said, carefully taking the vial and toasting the two of them, "see you on the other side."

"You sure you don't want to stick around?" Kuzco was saying, following Izzy as she headed out of the palace. After Kuzco had swallowed the potion, and it had worked, Izzy had agreed to say long enough to eat a good meal and get cleaned up. "I'm opening a very nice water park."

"What?" Izzy spun around. "After all that, you're still destroying Pacha's village for your stupid Kuzcotopia?"

"No, what? Izzy come on, how can you think I'm that heartless?" Izzy still looked suspicious. "Look, I found another hilltop. A more magical one. Open for all."

After another moment, Izzy nodded. "Alright, I'll buy that."

"So, you'll stay?"

"Nope. I have other worlds to see."

"Well then, want me to come with you to say goodbye to Pacha?"

"I already did." Kuzco opened his mouth. "And Kronk," she added quickly. "And the random villagers. And the waitress from the restaurant. And Yzma, who's still a kitten by the way."

Kuzco frowned, and Izzy rolled her eyes and hugged him. "It's been fun." She smiled one more time before heading out of the palace. "Who knows? Maybe I'll came back to visit."

'But probably not,' said that strange little voice, making Izzy frowned as she headed to her Gummi Ship.


End file.
